Patriots: No Rob Gronkowski, no problem

Wednesday

Nov 21, 2012 at 6:00 AM

The Patriots have no other choice, so they will move on without tight end Rob Gronkowski in tomorrow night's game against the Jets, and for the next few weeks. “It's called a team for a reason,” running back Stevan Ridley said yesterday. “Gronk's a vital part but we have other teammates who have to step up and get the job done, and that's what we're going to try to do.”

By Jennifer Toland TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

The Patriots have no other choice, so they will move on without tight end Rob Gronkowski in tomorrow night's game against the Jets, and for the next few weeks.

“It's called a team for a reason,” running back Stevan Ridley said yesterday. “Gronk's a vital part but we have other teammates who have to step up and get the job done, and that's what we're going to try to do.”

Gronkowski's third straight great season was interrupted Sunday in the closing minutes of the Patriots' 59-24 blowout of the Colts. He suffered a broken left forearm during the team's final extra point.

Brady has thrown 21 touchdown passes this season, 10 of which have landed in the hands of Gronkowski.

Since the start of 2010, Gronkowski leads all NFL players with 37 TD receptions.

Gronkowski, who has played the season with a nagging hip injury, has 53 catches for 748 yards. Against the Colts, he had seven receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns and became the first tight end in NFL history with three straight 10-touchdown seasons.

As the Colts found out, Gronkowski creates matchup problems for defenses — Indy tried three different linebackers on him unsuccessfully — and obviously the Patriots will miss his production and his blocking, not to mention his signature touchdown spike.

The Jets, not so much.

“I think when you look at it, this is an extremely talented team anyway,” New York coach Rex Ryan said. “There are five tight ends on the roster, so you don't know if they're going to plug someone else in. You don't know what they're going to do. They're very multiple with their personnel groupings anyway, so we basically have to be ready for anything.

“Clearly, Gronkowski is one of the premier players in this league, so I hate the fact that he's hurt, but if he's going to miss a game, I'm not upset that he's missing our game.”

The Patriots have four other tight ends on the roster — Aaron Hernandez, Visanthe Shiancoe, Daniel Fells and Michael Hoomanawanui. They are hoping the versatile Hernandez is ready to come back after missing the last three games due to a high ankle sprain.

“Every player has different strengths and you try to play to those strengths,” Brady said. “There's only one Rob Gronkowski. There's only one of those in the league. The guys who are going to be in there playing that role, Visanthe and Hoo-man and Daniel, they have to go in there and do the best that they can do. That's why they're on the team. That's why we have 53 guys on the roster, so everyone can contribute at one point or another.”

Hernandez last played when the Jets were at Gillette Stadium Oct. 21. The Patriots' offense wasn't its sharpest in that game, but has looked better since. New England hammered the Rams, 45-7, survived a scare from the Bills, 37-31, and with the help of 21 points from defense and special teams, closed out the Colts.

“We're just executing,” Brady said. “Guys are doing their job, guys are working hard and trying to understand what they need to do. Offensive football is about 11 guys being on the same page and this is an important week for that. If you're not, (the Jets) make you pay. They have a lot of different blitz schemes that are challenging, different personnel groupings. They kind of throw everything at you, so we have to be on top of our execution.”

Even without cornerback Darrelle Revis, the Jets have the league's fourth-ranked pass defense.

Brady has thrown 161 passes without an interception and has thrown just three picks all season. His career low in a season for interceptions was four in 2010.

“When you look at him, it's almost like he's a machine back there,” Ryan said. “The thing about him, he's a machine yet he's passionate and a fiery leader and all that type of stuff, so you wish he was just a machine. His competitive side elevates his team as well.”